Arrival & Departure Details:

Mount Kailash and Mansarovar Tour (20 days)

Trip Code:
NET-TB-KMTR1

Trip TypeTour & Trekking

Duration20 days

GradeModerate

Max.Altitude

Group Size2+

Travel ModeLand & Flight

Kailash Manasarovar Tour

The 20 days Mt. Kailash and Mansarovar Tour is perhaps one of the longest tours in Tibet. You will enter Tibet through Hilsa, the border town of Nepal-Tibet. To reach Hilsa, you will have to take a flight from Kathmandu to Nepalgunj and then to Simikot (2856m). From Simikot you will trek continuously for 4 days until Hilsa. Along the way enjoy snowy peaks in the distant horizon, visit ancient monastery of Darchen-Dira Phuk (4790m), and observe Tibetan lifestyles of local people.

At Hilsa, a four-wheel jeep awaits you along with a Tibetan guide. The jeep-drive across the Tibetan landscape will mesmerize you as you pass through Purang, one of the first towns in Tibet before setting on Lake Mansarovar. Located at a height of 4558m, the Lake is an oasis for a rich biodiversity and a sacred place for pilgrims. By day 13, you will drive back to Darchen to start the Kora (circumambulation) of Mt. Tise or Mt. Kailash. The Kora is definitely a big highlight of this trip. Tibetans can be seen offering and chanting prayers and making an arduous journey of encircling the mountain on foot. The Domala Pass at 5650m is the highest point reached during the Kora.

Once the Kora is finished, drive back to Darchen and return to Nepal via Kodari border. We provide all the logistics and permits for 20 days Mt. Kailash and Mansarovar Tour along with experienced guides.

The landing at the tiny mountain airstrip at Simikot is an unforgettable experience. There is an initial climb above Simikot before descending towards the village of Tuling and follow a level trail through walnut and apricot trees to the village of Dharapani. You camp for the night.

Leaving your campsite, you cross a long slope and follow the river to a waterfall near the shepherds' camp at Chachera. You then climb over a ridge and bypass the village of Kermi before entering a big valley with walled fields of potato and buckwheat. After walking through a sparse pine forest you descend from the ridge to the Salli Khola and camp by the river. You camp for the night.

You cross the river and climb over a rocky ridge before descending to the grey waters of the Humla Karnali. After crossing another ridge you come to a sandy meadow where goat herders often camp by the river. Beyond the meadow the valley narrows and you cross several more ridges, passing the villages of Yalbang and Yangar. The trail then winds its way precariously above the river before you cross a suspension bridge to the village of Muchu. You camp for the night

Darchen-Dira Phuk Gompa (4909m, 6 hrs trekking) Tarboche, marked by Tibetan flags is the starting point for kora and is the site for Tibet's most important annual Saga Dawa festival.

Walk up the Lha Chu Valley through beautiful green meadows and streams with Mt Kailash towering above us. You follow the river, which enters a narrow canyon with high, steep cliffs and spectacular waterfalls. Continuing up the valley, the north face of Kailash comes into view before you reach the 13th century monastery at Dira-phuk. Stay overnight in a camp.

Drira Phuk Monastery-Zuthul-Phuk (4790m, 7 hrs trekking) Bid farewell to Lha Chu Valley and prepare to walk the toughest part of the kora.

You will enter the Drolma Chu Valley, heading up towards a high pass, the Drolma La [5630m] that is marked by Tibetan prayer flags. The rest of the day's walk is mostly downhill and flat land. On descent, you will pass by one of the highest lakes in the world, Thukpe Dzingbu Lake, known as the Lake of Compassion. Zuthulphuk monastery is built at the site of a famous cave, which is believed to have been created as a result of contest between Milareppa (Buddhist Teacher) and Naro Bonchung (Bon Saint). Stay overnight in a camp.

From Paryang to Lake Mansorovar is a long drive of 10 hrs or more. There will be several river crossings and you drive past Mayum la pass (4600m.). The scenery is stunningly beautiful with panoramic views of the Himalayas. You camp for the night.

You climb a short distance to Sher, a Tibetan salt trading post at 3860m that is a windswept place of government buildings where passports and daysacks will be inspected. At Sher you meet our Tibetan guide and board our landcruisers for the two hour drive to Purang, (Taklakot) at 3930m. It is a rough fantastic drive that gives a taste of what lies ahead.

You pass through Tibetan villages where prayer flags flutter from the roofs of the whitewashed houses. You will stop briefly at the village of Khojarnath where there is a large red gompa of the Sakya sect of Buddhism. This impressive building is flanked by whitewashed chortens and at its base is a large wall made up of mani stones and yak skulls.

You stop briefly at Purang where the crew can purchase any supplies needed for the remainder of our journey. You then begin a four hour drive to Chiu Gompa on the shores of Lake Manasaravar. It is an incredible drive past the snow capped peak of Gurla Mandata (7728m) as the road climbs higher onto the Tibetan Plateau. In places the road is no more than the tracks of vehicles that have passed this way before.

From the Gurla La at 4590m you get our first glimpse of Mt Kailash or Gang Rimpoche in Tibetan, (meaning ‘Precious Jewel of Snow’). The dark waters of Rakshas Tal can be whipped up by the afternoon winds and dust devils dance along the shoreline. You cross the dividing ridge between the lakes to camp at Chiu Gompa on the shores of Manasaravar, looking out at the Sacred Mountain. The sunset views from camp are spectacular and many pilgrims come to this spot to bathe and camp before beginning their kora. Below the gompa there is a small hot spring and tea shop. You camp for the night.

Get prepared for Mt. Kailash Parikrama. About 30 kms north of Lake Manasorovar is Darchen, the main gateway and the village. The monastery at Darchen, Darchen Gon, is a part of the Drukpa sect. The two-story monastery structure in the center of the town serves as a trading post and shelter for pilgrims. Within the dukhang assembly hall are new and old thangka paintings and some statues, the main image being Sakyamuni. West of the gompa is the Mani Lhakhang that has a large, new mani prayer wheel. This is the site where the original old flagpole (a darchen is a flagpole for prayer flags) of Darchen was located. When beginning their kora pilgrimage around Kailash, many pilgrims often circumambulate the Darchen Gon monastery and the Mani Lhakhang before setting out. You camp for the night.

This Kailash circuit covers 53 kms and can be done in 3 days. You head west in clockwise direction and after a few kilometers the trail climbs up to a cairn at 4730 m from where the southern face of Mt. Kailash comes to view. En route you visit Tarboche where annual flagpole raising ceremony takes place during Saga Dawa. You camp for the night.

Yamasthal should be crossed to reach the Shiva-sthal while your steps go closer to the pass. Once you reach the top, just do the holiest offering and sit down for meditation to forget you. Once your steps go down, Parvati-stal and Gauri Kunda are on the way. By the late afternoon you will reach Zuthal Puk (the cave of Miracles. The great ascetic Milerappa is supposed to have performed miracles here). You camp for the night.

Your final day on the Kora is an easy three hours walking as you exit the Zhong Chu Valley on a trail that contours high above a narrow gorge. The hills become less vegetated and more desert like as you approach the Bharka Plain with seemingly limitless views towards the Indian Himlaya. At one point pilgrims stop and scoop out of the hillside the precious white clay called Ghang Rimpoche ku-sha or the flesh of Kailas. It is believed to have medicinal properties and is spread on foreheads to ease headaches and colds. You camp for the night.

The road is rough and there are some rivers to cross. Wild antelope and kiang (the Tibetan wild ass) are a common sight. This is the land of the drogpa nomads and you will pass many encampments with large herds of sheep and goats. The drives are long, bumpy and often dusty but the scenery is magnificent. Photo stops are a must! You camp for the night.

Leaving Saga, you cross the Yarlung Tsangpo [ Brahmaputra River] by ferry and continue our journey for 110km across the vast open plains. Stunning Himalayan views, particularly of Shishapangma, accompany us as you head towards a huge lake, the Paigutso. You camp for the night.

Drive from Nyalam to Kathmandu. From Nyalam, you drive down to the border town of Zhangmu.

From Zhangmu, it’s a short drive to the Friendship Bridge which spans the Bhote Kosi River and marks the Chinese - Nepalese border where you part with your Tibetan guide and driver and walk to Nepalese Immigration Control in Kodari where you will be met by your Nepalese staff. After completing the re-entry formalities you continue the drive to Kathmandu which, depending on road and weather conditions, should take about 5-6 hours.

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Shuichi O Kazawa, Hiroshi Hosoda, Kazuko Shifata, Japan

Really enjoyed our trekking

We are really enjoyed our trekking. Our guide are very honest and friendly. We impressed deeply not only nice scenery but also good persons.

Porters are also good persons. They carried our baggage not complained.